NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The Lipscomb men’s soccer team will close out the road portion of its regular season schedule this weekend. The Bisons will make stops at Florida Gulf Coast (Oct. 21, 6 p.m.) and Stetson (Oct. 23, 11 a.m.) as the regular season winds to a close.

The Bisons (4-9-2) enter the weekend at a high point in the season after last Sunday’s win against North Florida. Behind a school-record tying four goals from senior Garret Pettis, Lipscomb defeated the Ospreys 5-0 to improve to 3-2 in the Atlantic Sun and grab a share of second place in the conference.

Pettis’ fourth goal gave him 32 for his career, tying him with Miguel DaSilva for most in Lipscomb history. He earned his third career A-Sun Player of the Week honor, and the first of the 2011 campaign, on Monday. Thursday, Pettis was named to the Soccer America National Team of the Week.

Florida Gulf Coast began the season as the prohibitive conference favorites and the Eagles have lived up to that billing in their first official season of conference play. The Eagles enter the weekend at 6-4-2 overall, but their 3-1-0 mark in conference play has them tied with the Bisons for second in the A-Sun.

Florida Gulf Coast is led by a steady defense that has allowed only 14 goals this season. Keeper Adam Glick has 44 saves and sports a 1.12 goals against average.

The Stetson Hatters (5-5-2) are fighting to keep their tournament hopes alive this weekend; at 2-1-1 in the A-Sun, Stetson is sixth in the A-Sun but can’t afford many slip ups down the stretch. Mercer and ETSU are right behind the Hatters in conference play.

Lipscomb comes back home to close out the regular season in a rare Thursday night match, Oct. 27, against Mercer at 7 p.m.

Check LipscombSports.com for more information on the Bison soccer team, and be sure to follow us on Twitter (@LUMSoccer) and like us on Facebook (Lipscomb University Men’s Soccer Team).

Opponent’s Last Outings

Gulf Coast suffered its first A-Sun loss of the season last weekend, falling 2-1 at ETSU to end a 12-game A-Sun win streak for the Eagles. Gulf Coast also defeated Upstate, on the road, last weekend. Stetson pulled off a scoreless tie with ETSU and defeated Upstate 3-2 in overtime. Gonzalo De Mujica scored on a penalty kick with 47 seconds left in overtime to secure the victory for the Hatters.

Last Time Against This Weekend’s Opponents

Lipscomb fell to both Gulf Coast and Stetson in 2010. The Bisons took the Eagles to overtime but a Josey Portillo goal via free kick in the 91st minute gave Gulf Coast the game. Stetson defeated the Bisons 4-0. Jonathan Mendoza was the offensive catalyst for the Hatters, scoring twice and assisting on both of Stetson’s other goals.

Pettis Ties School Marks in Bisons Beatdown of North Florida

Pettis tied the school record for single-game goals (four) and career goals scored (32) in a lopsided affair against North Florida the Bisons took by a 5-0 score. Pettis scored four times in the game’s opening 30 minutes, and Isaac Pile added a second-half tally to round out Lipscomb’s scoring. Brent McGee earned his second shutout of the season by making two saves.

Bibb’s Fifth Not Enough, Bisons Fall to Jacksonville

Lipscomb mounted a rally after going down 2-0, but couldn’t get an equalizer in their Friday night match with conference-leading Jacksonville. Nick Bibb got his season’s fifth goal, but a last-minute header by Andrew Chamberlain was turned aside to preserve the Jacksonville win.